NEW CHANDIGARH: They call him the Prince, and on Friday he played like one. Not the ceremonial kind, but the kind who shows up when the kingdom needs him most, takes the sword off the wall, and gets on with it.
Shubman Gill didn’t just chase down the target of 215 so much as he dissected it. On a night when Rajasthan Royals had once again ridden the exhilarating batting of Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, the Gujarat Titans captain offered a masterclass in a different art form altogether.
There was no frenzy, no desperate slogging, no sense of a side under pressure in a knockout game. Instead, Gill produced a majestic 104 off 53 balls (15×4, 3×6), an innings of timing, balance and authority, as Gujarat Titans stormed into the IPL-2026 final with a seven-wicket win at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Stadium here.
The chase was a triumph of method over madness. Rajasthan’s 214/6 had been built on moments of explosive brilliance, particularly from the 15-year-old Sooryavanshi. Gujarat’s response, however, was built on something more sustainable. Gill and Sai Sudharsan (58 off 32b; 8×4, 1×6) hardly appeared to break into a sweat as they dismantled the target through proper cricketing shots, intelligent risk management and precision-oriented strokeplay.
The opening pair have been the backbone of Gujarat’s season and they rose to the occasion once more. Jofra Archer’s first over disappeared for four boundaries, but there was nothing reckless about the assault. Archer was bowling at upwards of 145kph and yet neither batter looked hurried. By the end of his second over, Gujarat had plundered 29 runs without hitting a single six. That set the tone.
A dropped chance offered Sudharsan an early reprieve, but Rajasthan’s bowlers were largely reduced to spectators as the two openers collected boundaries at will. There was no need for extravagant hitting. A boundary almost every over kept the asking rate comfortably under control. Gujarat reached 69 without loss in the Powerplay, matching Rajasthan’s start while taking considerably fewer risks.
The beauty of the chase lay in how uncomplicated Gill and Sudharsan made it look. Gill’s fifty came off 30 balls and was brought up with a trademark cut shot that screamed timing rather than power. Sudharsan, meanwhile, continued his outstanding season. His half-century came off 26 balls, and together the pair raced past 100 and then 150 without ever allowing Rajasthan an opening.
Sudharsan eventually departed for 58 in bizarre fashion, becoming hit wicket for the second consecutive match after his bat slipped from his hands and crashed into the stumps. The dismissal drew disbelief from players and spectators alike, but by then Gujarat were firmly in control.
The stage was set for Gill. With a place in the final on the line, the captain delivered exactly what leaders are expected to produce. His century came off 47 balls, a knockout-match hundred crafted with poise and precision.
Gill was eventually trapped leg-before by Archer, but his work was done. The result had long ceased to be in doubt. Gujarat completed the chase with ease and booked a meeting with Royal Challengers Bengaluru in Sunday’s final.
Earlier, a night after setting New Chandigarh alight with a breathtaking assault against Sunrisers Hyderabad, Sooryavanshi produced something arguably more impressive — a 96 off 47 balls that was not merely about power, but about judgment, adaptation and temperament.
The Rajasthan innings began amid early turbulence. Gujarat’s fast bowlers had come prepared and landed the first punches. Mohammed Siraj dismissed Yashasvi Jaiswal in the opening over, while Kagiso Rabada struck in his very next over when Dhruv Jurel’s ambitious lofted drive found mid-off. Rajasthan were 9/2 and Gujarat had executed the perfect start.
What followed was a fascinating contrast to Sooryavanshi’s whirlwind century in the Eliminator. Against Sunrisers, he had batted as if every ball deserved punishment. Here, Gujarat forced him into a different examination. Rabada peppered Sooryavanshi with short balls above 150kph, hurrying him with genuine pace. There were a couple of swings and misses from him too, rare moments of vulnerability.
Yet the response revealed another layer to his talent. One 154kph back-of-a-length delivery was launched straight back over Rabada’s head for a stunning six, a shot that drew comparisons with Virat Kohli’s famous strike off Haris Rauf in Melbourne during the 2022 T20 World Cup. It was audacious, but it was also calculated.
The Powerplay ended with Rajasthan at 70/2, but the youngster was not operating in overdrive. He picked his moments. He absorbed pressure. He respected good deliveries. For perhaps the first time this season, there was visible evidence that Sooryavanshi understood that T20 batting is not only about boundaries; it is also about managing phases.
Even when Ravindra Jadeja retired hurt briefly and wickets fell around him — Riyan Parag departed for 11, Dasun Shanaka and Jofra Archer followed — Sooryavanshi remained composed. A dropped catch by Sai Sudharsan offered him a lifeline, but he did not allow the opportunity to go to waste.
His fifty came off 31 balls, remarkably his slowest half-century of the season. That statistic alone explained the evolution on display. The innings was built rather than exploded into existence.
Then, once set, he accelerated with devastating effect. There was a glorious inside-out six over extra cover, a shot of pure class against the longer boundary. There were three ferocious forehand-like shots that resembled Rafael Nadal whipping winners from the baseline — one for four, one for six and another for four over the mid-off fielder. Somewhere amid the carnage, Sooryavanshi became the fastest player to 1,000 IPL runs and crossed 700 runs for the season.
The only disappointment was the ending. Four runs short of a deserved hundred; Sooryavanshi fell for 96 attempting to dispatch another short ball around his left shoulder, the dismissal uncannily similar to the one that ended his innings against Sunrisers. As the catch settled in the deep, the stadium rose to its feet. The teenager walked off distraught. Everyone else knew they had witnessed something special.
Donovan Ferreira’s blistering 38 off 11 balls and Jadeja’s unbeaten 45 ensured Rajasthan surged past 200, but the innings belonged to Sooryavanshi.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source sports.yahoo.com ’
